That diamond watch finally ended up on Timothy’s wrist.

“Ah, Stephanie, this isn’t right,” he said shyly. “That was supposed to be for Johnny…”

“It’s fine,” Stephanie interrupted softly. “They’re right. It really suits you. I must have chosen the wrong gift for John. Take it as a reward.”

A reward? For Timothy helping her save face, she meant?

Then a guy from the audience looked at me with open disgust. “Why is this man still here? Director Bloom, someone that ugly will only ruin my mood for our business occassion.”

Stephanie walked over to me and whispered, “John, please go home for now. I’m sorry, but this deal is too important. Just bear with it this time and I’ll explain everything to everyone later, okay?”

Before turning away, she hesitated and added, “Also… don’t wear sleeveless shirts or open collars anymore.”

I didn’t miss the hint of disgust in her eyes. It was almost funny. Didn’t she know these scars on my body exist because of her sending me to prison?

That night, I was woken by the sound of Stephanie kicking open my door. She dragged me out of bed, furious.

“So just because I didn’t admit our relationship today and gave the watch to Tim, you had to hurt him like this?!”

Before I could respond, she pulled me toward Timothy’s room.

Inside the bed, the blanket had been cut open — dozens of leeches were writhing underneath it. It was disgusting to say the least.

“Johnny,” Timothy cried weakly, “I didn’t mean to take your watch or your status. But it was about Steph’s reputation! I couldn’t explain it at the time. Why are you so cruel and put these blood-sucking things in my bed? I was born anemic! I was lucky to check on my bed in time… I’ll return the watch! Just please don’t hurt me…”

I looked at Stephanie. “I didn’t do it. If you don’t believe me, check the CCTV.”

But she didn’t even consider it. “There's no need. I know you too well, John—you always take revenge for every little thing. I thought prison might have changed you, but you’ve only gotten worse! You should have stayed in there a few more years!”

"No matter what, I'm going to teach you a lesson today. Don't ever dare hurt Tim again!"

Half an hour later, Stephanie’s men came in, covering their noses while carrying a half-human-tall metal barrel. Inside the barrel were countless squirming leeches. They then dumped them all into a bathtub.

“Hold Johnny down,” she ordered coldly.

I lifted my head and glared at her. “Stephanie, you’ll regret what you’re doing today.”

“I’ll only regret it if I don’t teach you a lesson!” she retorted.

They forced me into the bathtub. Hundreds of leeches wrapped around me and soon covered my entire body. In seconds, the water turned bright red.

Not long after that, I lost consciousness.

When I woke up again, I was lying on the living room sofa, receiving a blood transfusion. Then I remembered... Stephanie and I have the same blood type.

She looked at me for a while before sighing. “Do you have to be this stubborn? If you’d just admit your fault, if you’d just be gentle, I wouldn’t have treated you that way.”

What was she even trying to do? Did she plan on hurting me then coax me with comforting words?

I yanked the needle from my hand and staggered upstairs.

Behind me, I heard her embarrassed, angry voice, “John, take this as a lesson! I don’t want to see it happen again!”

At the top of the stairs, I ran into Timothy holding a bowl of porridge. “Ah, Johnny, you’re awake! I made this porridge just for you to recover. Eat it while it’s warm.”

I looked at him coldly. “So this is how a little slut climb to the top. You've staged everything, right?”

Hearing that, Timothy finally dropped his act and smiled mockingly.

“I really didn’t expect you to walk out of prison alive. But so what? When it's about love triangle, the one who isn’t loved… is always the third wheel, right?”

“You don’t believe me? I’ll prove it,” Timothy said after giving me a glance.

He suddenly smashed the bowl in his hand and screamed as he lunged down the stairs from his wheelchair.

Stephanie rushed up once she heard the noise and caught him just in time.

She turned to look at me with disdain. The next second, a strong hand grabbed my collar and I was thrown down the stairs. I rolled all the way down and got injured, my scalp bled.

“Johnny, you never change. Do you plan to use the same tricks you used back then?” she snapped.

“I've told you the last time,” I replied. “If you won’t trust my words, then fine, everyone is right! I'm a violent, malicious criminal who don't deserve to be your husband.”

After what had just happened, I knew any explanation would be useless.

I looked at her and smiled. “So, Director Bloom—will you send me away again for the sake of your little pet?”

Her eyes landed on my blood-covered face and paused. “Since Tim wasn’t seriously hurt this time, I won’t send you away,” she said. “But I will make Tim the groom at the wedding — that’s what you owe him.”

“As for us… after the wedding ceremony is over, I’ll register our marriage with you. That will be our way of closing this chapter after so many years. From then on, you’ll stay quietly in the villa I've arranged. I’ll let Tim handle things on the company with me.”

I almost laughed out loud. Stephanie really knew how to enjoy having both men.

The mocking look in my eyes seemed to anger her. Thus, she shouted at the bodyguards, “Take Johnny to the suburban villa immediately. Don’t let him out without my permission. Let him reflect on what he did so he won’t hurt Tim again!”

Four or five guards forced me into a car. But they did not take me to the villa but an dumped me on an abandoned factory instead.

One of them take out a knife from his pocket and sneered, “Mr. White ordered that you don’t see the sun tomorrow. We’re just doing a job for money. Don’t blame us.”

No wonder these men looked different from Stephanie's men. Turned out, they were Timothy’s people.

“One more thing,” the man said. “So you won’t die bored, Mr. White wanted us to show you something interesting.” He pushed a phone in front of my face. My pupils widened instantly.

On the screen, the cripled Timothy was now walking, arm-in-arm, with Stephanie while they were picking out wedding clothes.

He laughed and asked, “Steph, do I still need to pretend to be cripled? Won’t people get suspicious?”

“No,” Stephanie replied. “We’ll just say your leg has been healed. We must make you the most handsome groom, Tim. It was your idea to fall down the stairs when Johnny touched you. I then had someone forge the injury report—that’s how we got Johnny sent away.”

“Over the years, Johnny got more and more forceful. Sometimes I worried he was no longer a partner but a rival. I fought for everything I have now and I won’t let anyone threaten me.”

“I thought making him suffer inside would break his stubbornness. But he never changed.”

July was scorching hot, but I felt a bone-deep cold. We had been together for nearly twenty years. I had helped her build everything from nothing. We had been partners, friends, family. I never expected things would end like this?

She's destroying me because she feared me? How ridiculous.

I watched the guards close in with vicious smiles and closed my eyes for a moment.

When I opened them, killing intent showed in my gaze. “Finish them all!”

Before the guards could react, a group of men in black burst out from the corners and, in an instant, knocked the guards to the ground.

Amid the sound of cracking bones and screams, my friend Albert handed me a handkerchief, eyes full of restrained anger.

“Johnny, I’ll go kill those two bastards right now.”

I calmly wiped the blood from my face. “They worked so hard to prepare that wedding. It’d be a shame to waste it, wouldn’t it?”

“The wedding planner’s one of ours, right? Tell him to make sure Timothy agrees to hold the wedding at sea—use our most luxurious cruise ship. He loves to show off. He’ll say yes.”

Timothy had fallen in love with that cruise ship at first sight and sure enough, he agreed when the planner suggested it. Stephanie, of course, had no objections. The grander the wedding, the more prestige for her.

Then, on the wedding day, Timothy was nowhere to be found. Someone said they saw him go into the luxury suite prepared for their wedding night.

The guests laughed and teased, “The groom’s really impatient! He can’t even wait for the ceremony to end before the honeymoon? Director Bloom must be that irresistible! Hurry up and bring him out. There’ll be plenty of time to enjoy each other after the wedding!”

Stephanie smiled politely, but unease crept into her chest. Surrounded by guests, she went to the suite.

The moment she pushed the door open, screams erupted all around her. Timothy wasn’t in the room.

The bed, which should’ve been covered with rose petals, was soaked in blood. And right in the middle of it lay a severed, bloody hand—still wearing that diamond watch.

“What a sight! Don't you agree?” I clapped my hands lightly and stepped out from the crowd, smiling. “Director Bloom, your wedding decorations are always so… unique. Shouldn’t you go take a closer look?”